WASHINGTON The Dietary Supplement Information Bureau, a division of the Natural Products Foundation, last week pointed to the plethora of positive news surrounding vitamin D as one of the more significant drivers in sales of vitamin D products.

"As we mentioned last year, the flood of positive literature surrounding vitamin D research has placed the supplement's popularity in a rapid ascendancy, and with good cause," the association stated.

The latest news about vitamin D research concerns vitamin D levels and young type 1 diabetics. Boston researchers have found that children and teenagers with type 1 diabetes have a very high rate of vitamin D deficiency; approximately 75% lack sufficient vitamin D levels. As a result, youths with type 1 diabetes are at greater risk for bone issues later in life, especially bone fractures. "To our surprise, we found extremely high rates of vitamin D inadequacy," stated senior researcher Dr. Lori Laffel of Harvard Medical School in Boston. "We didn't expect to find that only 24% of the study population would have adequate levels."

Research suggests that lowered levels of vitamin D may be inherent in type 1 diabetes, putting individuals at greater risk for bone-density loss. Elevated blood sugar, lowered calcium levels, and symptomatic inflammation are all thought to potentially contribute to the problem. As these are inherent difficulties of the condition, and because vitamin D is not naturally contained in most foods, the American Academy of Pediatrics and researchers have recommended that children and teenagers should take 400 International Units of vitamin D supplements each day, DSIB noted.

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